Robbery on coast nets 31 felony charges for three linked to Henderson

Three men with ties to Henderson are facing 31 felony charges in Carteret County and have collective bond amounts exceeding $7 million.

James Alton West, Thomas Moss and Dequan Malik Bullock are connected to a botched home invasion robbery in Newport, a town just outside of Havelock off U.S. 70. The three have felony charges of attempted robbery, kidnapping, burglary, armed assault with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, accessory to felonies, conspiracy and kidnapping.

West, 36, and Moss, 21, are each charged on a count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and a count of carrying a concealed weapon.

Bond was set for Moss at $3,015,000, for West at $2,015,000 and for Bullock at $2,010,000.

West was listed with an Otway address, another coastal community. In past police reports published in The Dispatch, West appears in numerous Vance County cases of affray and traffic related charges as residing at 75 Eagle Lane, Henderson. Most happened in 2007 and 2008.

Moss and Bullock list Henderson addresses, according to Jay Johnson of the Newport police. Johnson said he could not comment on details of the case beyond confirming the arrests that were made.

According to a published report by WCTI-Ch. 12, investigators established an outline of activity by the three men that included:

• Moss and Bullock came from Henderson to visit West.

• They engaged in drinking and partying activities for several days.

• They conspired to take pills and cash from an individual not named in reports who they thought lived at 150 East Chatham Street in Newport.

• They forced their way into the East Chatham Street home on Saturday, finding the person they were looking for was not there.

• They found five people there and forced them to lie down on the floor.

• One of the assailants fired a small caliber handgun, injuring three males, ages 23, 46 and 56.

• A pregnant woman and the child she bore were not shot.

• The three injured men received treatment at a hospital for non-threatening injuries, and all three have since been released.

• Nothing was stolen from the residence.

According to court records from Catawba and Craven counties:

• Moss is charged with three counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, in addition to burglary, carrying a concealed weapon, possession of firearm as a convicted felon and five counts each of attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon and kidnapping with a dangerous weapon.

• West is charged with two counts each of conspiracy, accessory before a felony and accessory after the fact, in addition to carrying a concealed weapon and possession of a firearm as a convicted felon.

• Bullock is charged with burglary, five counts each of attempted robbery and kidnapping and with carrying a concealed weapon.

State prison records note West as convicted of numerous criminal assault, break-in, larceny and drug counts in Vance and Granville counties dating from 1994 through 2008 and noted his location as residing in Vance County as of October 2008.

Moss bears a state prison record of five prior breaking and entering felony convictions from 2009, 2010 and 2011 incidents, all in Warren County. State records list Moss living in Warren County as of March 10, 2011.